Anne Lehto named new director of the Open Science Centre

The director of the Open Science Centre is responsible for the overall development and management of the Centre.

Anna Lehto has previously worked as the director of the Tritonia Academic Library in Vaasa for ten years. In this role, she was responsible for achieving the operational goals and financial targets of the joint library serving three higher education institutions. She has experience working at the intersection of university and university of applied sciences library services. Her other roles have included department head at Tampere University Library, publishing manager, lecturer in information retrieval and various specialist roles. At the University of Helsinki Library, she worked as a project planner.

“A key strength Anna Lehto brings to the role is a leadership style that fosters commitment in an expert organisation,” says Rector Jari Ojala. “Lehto’s openness to new ways of working and constructive approach to collaboration will help create stability during times of change.”

“I am particularly motivated by the opportunity to bring together strategic leadership, support for learning and research, and societal impact,” explains Lehto. “The University of Jyväskylä and the Open Science Centre offer a diverse and inspiring environment for promoting the open, responsible and impactful use of research-based knowledge, both nationally and internationally. My vision for the future is a society in which open knowledge, data and approaches based on artificial intelligence help address major global challenges in an ethically sustainable way.

“I see the Open Science Centre as significantly strengthening both the University’s impact and society’s resilience. It does this by providing science education, information literacy skills and open data resources, while also supporting research, AI literacy and lifelong learning. The Centre plays a key role in promoting the availability, understanding and use of reliable information in a rapidly changing environment.”

The Open Science Centre is a unique combination of the University of Jyväskylä Library and the University Science Museum. The Centre employs around 70 people. It provides expert and up-to-date library and museum services, as well as in-person and online support services for open science and research.